Careless owners can make vehicle theft easy, say police. JAMES LUCKHURST reports on ways to make your belongings more secure

Take a walk through any city centre multi-storey car park and the chances are you'll find plenty of cars unlocked or displaying potentially rich pickings for the opportunist thief.

A jacket left draped over a seat back, a cardboard box on the back seat, or the lure of something exciting in the glove compartment is all the temptation a thief will need to attempt to break in and grab what he can.

In the Strathclyde Police area alone during 1998/99 a vehicle crime was committed every 11 minutes. In almost one in 12 incidents investigated by the police the thief did not have to break in to steal, according to a spokeswoman.

''The owner had left the vehicle insecure, sometimes with the keys inside. On many occasions, even when security devices were present, they had not been primed,'' she says.

''Cars of around four to eight years old face the greatest risk of being stolen or attacked,'' says Mark Inman, research manager at Thatcham Motor Insurance repair and research centre, an independent organisation for vehicle security systems testing.

''There are about 15m cars on Britain's roads with no security system whatsoever, and many of these are very desirable cars. Think of all the fast GTIs and GTEs that may not be new but are still extremely quick and a big lure to thieves.''

The situation with newer cars is safer, though it breeds a kind of car theft that's based on fraud or pick pocketing.

''Since January 1997 all cars imported into the UK have had to have immobilisers fitted as standard,'' says Inman. ''That means any car that's up to around four years old will have a reasonable level of security. However, thieves who are unable to crack a car's security system don't appear to give up easily.'' Apparently their methods have become more sophisticated and they may resort to sticking wires through letterboxes in order to steal car keys.

As well as more devious methods, there has been an increase in car break-ins for the purpose of cloning. Thieves break into the car not to steal it, or anything in it, but in order to establish the car's chassis number. That's because they will be in possession of an identical car that's been stolen, so they duplicate the legitimate number plate and PIN number. This cleans up the stolen car and makes the process of selling more straightforward and more lucrative.

So what's the situation with car security, and what can be done to minimise the risks of having a car stolen or broken into? There was a period in the late 1990s where car crime rates hit a peak, according to AA spokesman Luke Bosdet. ''Since then we have seen the introduction of far more sophisticated security devices and technology,'' he says.

''There are two trends to observe. First of all, the success of security devices and secondly, the increase in public awareness of being more security minded. However, a lot of people do not necessarily report car crime as they don't see the point in it and prefer not to make claims on their policies.''

However, according to Inman, car security comes down to individual responsibility. ''If you buy a new vehicle you have to take steps to protect it. Leaving it open, with the keys in the ignition, or with expensive items on show, is just asking for trouble. In situations like this it's difficult for the police to succeed,'' he says.

The process of testing and approving car security systems is both rigorous and extensive. The research teams at Thatcham put a piece of kit through four main phases in order to ascertain its worthiness as a security device. ''First of all the system is appraised and the paperwork is checked,'' says Inman. ''Then we move to the attack and installation phase where we invite a manufacturer to install the system into a vehicle before setting one of our engineers the task of overcoming the system within five minutes.''

The final phases involve extended laboratory tests during which the system is switched on and off 100,000 times, it is exposed to salt mist spray, extremes of hot and cold temperature and various levels of vehicle vibration simulation.

A number of other ''tricks'' are carried out to attempt to short-circuit or disable the mechanism. The whole process of testing takes around three months.

Recent research conducted by insurance organisation Direct Line showed that 57% of drivers now have cars fitted with security alarms, though there are still a number of strategies a driver can adopt to deter thieves.

''If you have a garage, keep it locked and ensure the car is kept locked inside it,'' says Dominic Birch. ''Never leave keys in the ignition, doors unlocked or windows open. Most importantly, if you have an alarm, always set it and test it regularly,'' he says.

Ensuring your car is ''clean'' is effective and may just make the difference for a thief deciding whether to smash a window and explore what might be on offer inside. ''Take everything out of the car, and if possible leave the glove box open so that anyone can see its empty,'' says Inman.

''Park in the lightest, most prominent position you can find, and go for a secure car park in a city centre. This won't guarantee your car will be safe, but crime rates in these car parks are certainly on the low side.''

Experts agree that motorists should report all incidences of vehicle crime, however minor they may seem.

''Not only can it help the police to plan their next initiative and possibly break up a local crime wave, but it will also cover you if you only realise three weeks after a theft that something had gone missing,'' says Bosdet.